Greene County Sheriff Jim Arnott plans to start using the temporary jail on Wednesday.

Sheriff's deputies will bring back to Greene County 108 inmates currently being housed in other jails across the state, according to a news release from the sheriff's office.

The release said the permanent jail facility's staffing levels will be reduced to a minimum over the next couple of weeks.

Offers of employment have been given to 14 correctional officers over the past two weeks, the release said. The sheriff's office hopes to have both the temporary and permanent jail facilities fully staffed by the second week of January.

The release said there will be a disruption of some Bible study classes on Wednesday.

"Please be patient with us as we make this transitional period and work towards fulfilling our promise," the release said.

Greene County's lease on the temporary jail — constructed from a series of semi-trailers that have been outfitted with sleeping bunks and other features — began on Nov. 1. Arnott previously told the News-Leader that construction was completed and the facility was turned over to him to use on Nov. 22.

The trailer jail, which has remained vacant for weeks, is being leased from a company called All Detainment Solutions for $873,153 a year for the first two years. That averages out to $2,392 a day.

Interested in this topic? You may also want to view these photo galleries:

In an earlier interview with the News-Leader, Greene County Commissioner Lincoln Hough said the whole point of building a temporary jail was to save money. It was built so the sheriff's office would have a smaller number of inmates to transport every day and Greene County could stop paying other counties to house 108 of its inmates, Hough said.

As the semitrailers sat vacant, Hough said, it was "a problem" that the county continued to shell out $4,320 a day to house 108 inmates in other counties' jails.

Arnott said on average, 170 inmates are being housed out-of-county each day.

As of August, the county had spent $1 million on boarding fees for those inmates, Jeff Scott, the county's budget officer, previously told the News-Leader.

Arnott said the temporary jail has remained empty because the sheriff's office did not have enough staff to begin housing inmates in the facility. Arnott said it was a safety issue.

Arnott said the sheriff's office has struggled with attracting and retaining employees because of low wages, causing his staffing levels to change frequently.

On Wednesday, the Greene County Commission unanimously voted to implement a plan that gives all employees raises, and in each subsequent year provides cost-of-living and merit-based increases.

All county employees will get a pay bump in January, ranging from 3 percent to about 36 percent, according to Human Resources Director Mailyn Jeffries. The average percent raise across all county employees will be 8.46 percent, she said.

During that meeting, Arnott expressed approval of the commission's decision.

After the vote, Presiding Commissioner Bob Cirtin said the sheriff can now tell what prospective employees are going to be paid.